It said they also deliberated on boosting connectivity, facilitating efficient disaster management, and tackling new and emerging threats.

“They adopted guidelines for the maritime component of humanitarian assistance and disaster relief. These guidelines will help BIMSTEC member states to undertake relief operations in the region in an expeditious manner,” the MEA said.

“They also endorsed a set of guiding principles on the conduct of maritime law enforcement agencies during interactions at sea,” it said.

The MEA said these principles are expected to outline reference points for increasing predictability and promoting safety during maritime engagements among member states.

“As BIMSTEC approaches its 30th anniversary next year, the National Security Advisors/ Heads of Delegations reiterated their resolve to further enhance collaboration and knowledge sharing towards strengthening regional security, building resilience, and enhancing institutional capacities to address diverse security threats,” it said.

At the meeting, the BIMSTEC secretary general presented a comprehensive overview of the status of cooperation in the security sector and briefed the member states on the progress made across a wide range of sectors.

“BIMSTEC bridges South Asia and Southeast Asia, two of the most significant and vibrant regions of the Indian Ocean,” the MEA said.

“Over the years, BIMSTEC has deepened cooperation in regional security, disaster management, transport and trade connectivity, technological issues, and people-to-people contacts,” it said in the statement.

Doval underscored the need for closer regional cooperation to tackle evolving security challenges, saying the current global landscape marked by conflicts, geopolitical uncertainties and technological disruptions requires BIMSTEC member states to work together and take “decisive actions” for their mutual benefit.

Addressing the fifth BIMSTEC National Security Chiefs’ Meeting, Doval said, “We are meeting today in the backdrop of a challenging global landscape. We are witnessing conflicts and geopolitical uncertainties. We are also facing multi-domain security threats, amplified by rapid technological advancements. Disruptions in global supply chains have also resulted in economic hardship for all our countries.”

“In this setting, there’s an urgent need for us to collaborate, take decisive actions for our mutual benefit, and find solutions through mutual discussions and deliberations to the vexed problems that we are all facing,” he said.

Highlighting the significance of the Bay of Bengal grouping, Doval said BIMSTEC unites two of the world’s most dynamic regions and represents a population of 1.7 billion people, around 22% of the global population, with a combined GDP of nearly USD 5 trillion.

“We are united by the Bay of Bengal, not just geographically, but also through deep civilizational and cultural legacies that have evolved over a millennium of shared history,” he said.

The NSA said BIMSTEC has built strong cooperation across multiple security sectors and has made significant progress in countering common threats.

He said, “Building on these unique bonds, BIMSTEC has been anchored in robust cooperation across a range of sectors on the foundations of a great past. We strive to achieve a great future, sharing prosperity and resilience for all our people.” “We have advanced and strengthened cooperation in fighting terrorism, combating transnational organised crime, cyber threats, meeting maritime challenges, and we are poised to combat new and emerging threats together,” Doval said.

He said BIMSTEC’s long-standing goals of regional security, connectivity, capacity building and economic security should continue to guide the grouping’s collective efforts. “BIMSTEC’s long-standing goals of regional security, connectivity, capacity building and economic security should continue to drive our collective efforts.”